It is not new to utilize the internal resistance of a frankfurter or the like to cook the frankfurter by passing an electric current through it. Representative prior patents, all of them issued in the United States, are as follows:
U.S. Pat. No. 1,974,715 issued Sept. 25, 1934 to S. Kohn, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 1,993,353 issued Mar. 5, 1935 to R. H. Young, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 1,994,894 issued Mar. 19, 1935 to A. G. Marcotte, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,022,940 issued Dec. 13, 1935 to V. J. Persiani, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,052,919 issued Sept. 1, 1936 to J. C. Brogdon et al, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,094,814 issued Oct. 5, 1937 to R. Pool, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,139,690 issued Dec. 13, 1938 to S. V. McConnell et al, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,345,049 issued Mar. 28, 1944 to G. W. Hunter, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,621,587 issued Dec. 16, 1952 to M. Savio, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,776,358 issued Jan. 1, 1957 to M. T. Sturr, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,895,405 issued July 21, 1959 to R. E. Hopkins, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,951,433 issued Sept. 6, 1960 to C. H. Steuber et al, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,980,010 issued Apr. 18, 1961 to B. E. Williams, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 2,986,991 issued June 6, 1961 to L. E. Yetter, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 3,948,159 issued Apr. 6, 1976 to K. B. Vigerstrom, PA1 U.S. Pat. No. 3,966,972 issued June 29, 1976 to E. T. Theimer, et al PA1 a base portion which includes support means for supporting at least one sausage-like item so that the latter is restrained against lateral deflection when axially compressed, said support means being electrically non-conducting, said support means being shaped to define at least one rounded trough into which a sausage-like item can be placed, PA1 first electrically conductive contact means adjacent one end of said at least one sausage-like item, PA1 second electrically conductive contact means adjacent the other end of said at least one sausage-like item, PA1 one of said contact means being movable toward and away from the other, to allow the contact means to simultaneously contact the respective ends of a sausage-like item in the support means, PA1 each said conductive contact means being a metallic plate having at least one raised protuberance substantially in axial alignment with said at least one trough, PA1 a carriage adapted to reciprocate in a direction aligned with said at least one trough, the movable plate being mounted on said carriage, PA1 electrical means for passing electrical current between the two plates through said at least one sausage-like item, thereby heating the item due to the item's internal resistance, PA1 an on-off switch connected with said electrical means such that when the switch is off no electrical current can flow between the two plates, and such that when the switch is on current can flow between the two plates; PA1 a lid hinged to the base portion and adapted to swing between an open position and a closed position, the lid being operatively connected with said switch and with one of said plates such that (1) when the lid is in the open position, a sausage-like item may be inserted into or removed from the support means and said switch is off, and (2) when the lid is in the closed position, physical access to a sausage in the support means is prevented and the switch is on, and PA1 resilient means biasing the carriage toward the non-movable plate, the lid being operatively connected with said carriage by cam and follower means such that, as the lid moves from its open toward its closed position, the carriage is permitted to move toward the non-movable plate under the urging of the spring means, to achieve a final position dependent upon the length of the sausage-like item, and as the lid moves from its closed toward its open position, the carriage is retracted away from the non-movable plate against the urging of said spring means.
Despite the disclosures of the prior art, however, there is a need for a compact, light-weight cooker for frankfurters and the like which is reliable and can readily accommodate items of different lengths.
More particularly, it is highly desirable to provide a safety feature whereby electric current is applied to the probes or contacts only when the cooker is closed in such a way that the operator cannot come into contact with the probes.
Further, there is a need for a cooker designed in such a way as to provide an indication as to when these frankfurters, sausages or the like are fully cooked.
The present invention addressed the foregoing desirable characteristics.